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News Nuggets, 02.22.06
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Compiled from staff reports and electronic dispatches

Scholarship suit could be costly to NCAA

Tom Farrey of ESPN the Magazine has reported that a federal antitrust lawsuit filed in Los Angeles seeks to prohibit the NCAA from telling member colleges they cannot offer athletic scholarships up to the full cost of attendance, an action that could expose the NCAA to hundreds of millions of dollars in damages for past wrongs.

A class-action claim was brought on behalf of Division I-A football players and major-college basketball players, whose programs generate the overwhelming amount of revenue that flows into college athletic departments. Under antitrust law, any current scholarship athlete, as well as any player in the past four years, qualifies as a plaintiff.

Ramogi Huma is a case in point of the suit's intent. As a UCLA linebacker in the late 1990s, Huma left college after four years with $6,000 in credit card debt. His scholarship paid for tuition, room, board and required books but not incidentals such as phone bills and travel expenses. Coming from a lower-income family, he lacked the funds to cover the difference.

"That's where MBNA came in and cleaned house," Huma said of his high-interest credit card.

After graduation, Huma lobbied for a bona fide full ride for NCAA athletes, whose standard scholarship package, called a grant-in-aid, is equal to an amount about $2,500 a year less than the official cost of attendance. The NCAA wouldn't budge, despite supportive statements made by association president Myles Brand about raising the cap.

Big C-USA hoops matchup on tap tonight

Texas-El Paso, in its inaugural campaign in Conference USA, is looking to make an NCAA Tournament appearance for the third consecutive season.

The Miners (17-6, 10-1 C-USA) can go a long way toward achieving that objective by knocking off the best the league has to offer when they challenge No. 3 Memphis tonight on the road.

UTEP won the Western Athletic Conference regular season title two years ago and that league's postseason tournament last year.

Memphis is undefeated in C-USA (10-0) and carries 24-2 overall record into the 10 p.m. matchup at FedExForum. The contest can be seen on ESPN2.

C-USA Basketball Standings, Scores & Schedule

News Nuggets are compiled periodically based on material supplied by staff members; data published by ECU, Conference USA and its member schools; and reports from other sources. Copyright 2006 Bonesville.net and other publishers. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Page Updated: 02/23/2007 12:45 PM